Southampton girls basketball ruled ineligible for playoffs after playing one too many games

The Southampton girls basketball team was ruled ineligible for postseason play this season because it played one more game than the state rule allows.

“Southampton scheduled 21 contests, and you’re only allowed to play 20 by state rule," said Tom Combs, the executive director of Section XI, Suffolk County's governing body of high school sports. "So the season is over."

Southampton athletic director Darren Phillips said the extra game was an oversight, and the school is appealing the decision to the county's Athletic Council, which is composed of athletic directors, superintendents and administrators.

“It was just a human error, just something that got overlooked somehow,” Phillips said. “The infraction really doesn’t impact anything. It doesn’t impact the playoffs or standings. It’s not like we had an ineligible player. To me, it’s an easy fix or correction by not penalizing the kids.”

Southampton finished the season with a 13-8 overall record and a 10-6 league mark, which would qualify them for the playoffs.

Southampton coach Richard Wingfield called it “an honest mistake,” adding, “I would have done something about that at the beginning if I knew it.”

According to Combs, the Class B girls basketball playoffs will start late next week.

“The tournament was seeded Friday morning and we did it with Southampton in the tournament and with them out,” Combs said.

Phillips said he was notified about the issue in late January by Section XI.

“At that point, we had three league games left,” Phillips said. “There was nothing we could do.”

If the appeal is denied, Phillips and Wingfield said there’s an option to take the issue to the state, however, the playoffs will have likely started by then.

Mike Oakley, whose daughter Caraline is one of the Mariners’ captains, said he and his wife, Patty, sent a letter to the New York Public High School Athletic Association, which oversees high school sports at the state level, expressing their disappointment over the rule.

“It’s a shame,” Oakley said. “The girls are just totally heartbroken that they put everything into this season and to see this come about, it’s nuts.”

The Mariners are still hoping the decision will be reversed, but Wingfield said the team is devastated.

“They’re broken. They’re children,” Wingfield said. “They don’t understand why they have to be so punished by such a rigorous discipline policy for a mistake that Coach made. Then they’re sorry for Coach because they know that Coach wouldn’t do anything wrong like that.”

Kelley Zorko, whose daughter Reilly is a junior, said she doesn't blame Wingfield and questions why the punishment is so harsh.

"We all make mistakes," Zorko said, "but my biggest thing is that Section XI is punishing the kids. I think [the punishment] needs to change ...  We have nothing but good things to say about [Wingfield]. He's amazing. We adore him."